Aerodacious

(Aviation + Audacious = Aerodacious)

Page ccCAM005 (Revised 01/19/2009)

Background: The Air Mail Act of 1925 (Kelly Act) authorized the postmaster general to contract for domestic airmail service with commercial air carriers. It also set airmail rates and the level of cash subsidies to be paid to companies that carried the mail. By transferring airmail operations to private companies, the government effectively would help create the commercial aviation industry. Various routes were designated and contracts for carrying the mail over these routes were then awarded to many different private air service companies. The Contract Air Mail routes became known as CAM's.
CAM-5:
CAM-5 was awarded to Varney Air Lines. Varney was founded in 1926 by Walter T. Varney. CAM-5 air service was inaugurated with both north and south flights on April 6, 1926 between Elko Nevada and Pasco Washington with an interim stop in Boise Idaho. In order to provide a safer route during the winter, Salt Lake City was substituted for Elko beginning on October 1, 1926. Postal mail covers carried on the inaugural flight between each point of landing and take-off are collectible and are known as CAM-5 covers.

Varney Air Lines used New Swallow bi-planes with Curtiss engines for this initial April 6, 1926 air service. The New Swallow bi-planes were built by the Swallow Company which survived the dissolution of the E M Laird Aviation Company (partnership of Laird, Burke and Moellendick).
Pilots flying different legs of this April 6th CAM-5 inaugural air service included, Leon D. Cuddeback, Franklin Rose and Arthur L. Waters. Pilot, Paul P. Scott joined Varney for the October 1st inaugural flight.

CAM-5:
On February 9, 1934 the Post Office Department canceled all contracts of operators flying mail on routes within the US to become effective on February 19, 1934. The reason given by the Post Office was that there was suspicion that the mail carrying contracts had been awarded through collusion during the previous Administration.
Cancellation of the air mail contracts held by established pioneer airline companies was accompanied by an executive order from President Franklin D Roosevelt stating that the Army Air Corps should now carry the mail. Three territorial zones were established for the Air Corps mail operations, Newark NJ, Chicago IL and Salt Lake City UT. The eastern, central and western zones each had branch routes to other feeder cities. It was a difficult assignment for the Army Air Corps as they did not have enough planes and the ones they had, did not have the latest instruments, landing, navigation, or cockpit lights. One of the aircraft they used was the Keystone B-4 bi-plane.

New commercial air mail carrying contracts were made in May 1934 and the mail was again flown by private contractors over re-designated revised Post Office Department routes in late June 1934.

CAM-5:
After the February 1934 cancellation and reinstatement of new commercial air mail carrying contracts over re-designed revised Post Office routes in late June 1934, United Air Lines began flying CAM-5 air mail.
UAL began on July 1, 1931 as the holding company of four air carriers, Boeing Air Transport (CAM-18), Varney Air Lines (CAM-5), Pacific Air Transport (CAM-8) and National Air Transport (CAM-17). Each of these contributing airlines flew different types of aircraft when taken over by United.

After consolidation, UAL introduced the twin engine Boeing 247 to initially fly some of its mail routes. The Boeing 247 was the first low-winged, all-metal, twin-engined air transport flown on the scheduled airlines. Its speed, comfort and safety created excitement and was quickly accepted by the public, making all other transports suddenly obsolete.